Mark 4:35–5:20

Bringing the sermon home:

After recording a series of four parables about the coming of the kingdom of God, Mark then records a series of four miracles attesting to the truth and power of Jesus’ words. All four of these miracle accounts present a contrast between faith and fear.

In the face of great danger at sea, as a life-threatening storm bears down on them, Jesus’ disciples challenge His care for them with the question, “Don’t you care that we are perishing?” In the presence of danger and distress, we all struggle with the temptation to doubt God’s love. In those moments, we too need to hear and to heed Jesus’ response to them, teaching us to fight fear with faith: “Why are you so afraid? Have you still no faith?”

This is not a promise that no harm will come to us. While Jesus did spare their lives and wellbeing that night, the time would come when most, if not all, of these disciples would suffer some form of imprisonment, torture, or even execution for the sake of following Jesus. Instead, this is a call for fear to give way to faith in Jesus’ promise:

1. that He is with us in the storm, calming our fear,
2. that He has a purpose for having led us into the storm, and
3. that He will ultimately deliver us from the grave.

Then, after liberating a demon-possessed man, the fear of the onlookers it is contrasted with the faith of the freed man, whom Jesus tells to go and tell others “how much the Lord had done for you”. This is the life of faith.